This invention relates to the field of tools used in the railroad industry by locomotive engineers to aid in the application release of locomotive engine vertical handwheel handbrakes. The operation of locomotive handbrakes is, in principle, the same as the handbrakes used on railroad cars. Application of the brakes means to set the handbrake to a “stop” position in which the locomotive will not move accidentally. Release of the brake means to set the handbrake to an “off” position in which the locomotive can be safely moved.
Locomotive handbrakes are placed on locomotives to be used in addition to the locomotive air brakes to keep the locomotives from moving while not in use, should the locomotive air brakes fail or be accidentally released by mistake. Handbrakes on locomotives are always left in the applied position when not being used.
One brake application release tool is shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/025,880, filed on Feb. 11, 2011. The tool is used for the application release of handbrakes on railroad freight and passenger cars. Where railroad car handbrakes are mounted on either the end or side of the car, the handbrakes on locomotive engines are typically mounted on the side of the locomotive engine compartment. The handbrake is operated from the locomotive walkway that extends the length of the engine compartment, from the rear of the locomotive to the locomotive cab. The handbrake is located so that the engineer or worker operates the brake at about waist or chest level relative to the handbrake wheel.
The handbrakes in both railroad cars and locomotives include a handbrake chain that tightens as the handbrake is applied by rotating the handbrake wheel. The biggest difference between handbrakes on railroad cars and handbrakes on locomotives is the amount of free slack in the handbrake chain. On railroad car handbrakes, this free slack is eliminated by about 2 to 4 revolutions of the wheel. However, in locomotive handbrakes, free slack is about 20 to 25 complete revolutions of the wheel. The handbrake must also be released completely when not in use, which requires reversing the process of setting the handbrake entirely. That is, turning the handwheel all the way until there is slack in the chain and the brake is fully released.
To begin the process of applying or releasing a locomotive handbrake, a railroad worker stands on the compartment walkway and grasps the handwheel with one or two hands. The worker then turns the handle in the clockwise direction to apply the brake, or in the counterclockwise direction to release the brake. This process may require the worker to re-grasp the wheel two to three times to complete one revolution of the handbrake wheel. Some operators may place two or three fingers at the junction of the handwheel inside rim and spoke, and rotate the handwheel continuously until all free slack is removed. Then, the worker grasps the handwheel at the highest point with one or both hands and fully applies the handbrake.
By trying to spin the handwheel with two or three fingers, an unsafe condition is created if the handwheel should suddenly stop and lock up. Some wheels offer continuous resistance to free spinning, and require too much force to utilize this method. This situation could also result in serious injury to the railroad worker's fingers. Therefore, a need exists for safe and effective tools for any railroad worker to remove the free slack in a handbrake chain.
Most new locomotives purchased by railroads around the time of filing, and those purchased in the prior decade, contain computers that monitor all aspects of the locomotive. These computers have sensors that trip an alarm should the handbrake not be completely released and someone tries to move the locomotive. Consequently, the handbrake handwheel must be rotated in the counterclockwise direction until it stops, and must be left in that position, in order for the locomotive computer to not trip the handbrake set alarm.
Should the locomotive handbrake handwheels have a permanently mounted handgrip on the handwheel, the handgrip would create a tripping or impact hazard, because it would be sticking out into the walking path of the railroad employee. Even if the handgrip were made to fold out of the way of the walking path, the handgrip could still become a tripping hazard due to bad maintenance or being accidentally left unfolded. The tripping hazard of a permanently mounted handgrip is increased by the fact that a high percentage of the times these walkways are traversed, they are done so at night and while the train is moving.